DD-Sport > Football > The ultimate showdown between the two men: Messi set a new record at the age of 37, while Ronaldo is still catching up at the age of 38!

The ultimate showdown between the two men: Messi set a new record at the age of 37, while Ronaldo is still catching up at the age of 38!

The two strongest football players on the surface

Middle League, Miami International lost to Minnesota United 1-4, and the 37-year-old Messi scored his only goal, which was his 860th goal in 1,098 games. The entire football world was amazed: this is the most gorgeous "efficiency rhapsody" in the history of human football.

At that time, the 38-year-old Ronaldo was still running hard for the same number, and he did not achieve his goal in 1,189 fierce battles until he was 38 years old. The "goal competition" between the two football legends is like the ultimate collision between two football philosophy. The two strongest football players on the surface have a battle for efficiency: Messi's "precision art" vs Ronaldo's "power aesthetics"

Messi's 860 goals are like a precision-operating machine - an average of less than 1 goal per game, but woven the most gorgeous offensive network with 1,098 games. His shots were as sharp as a scalpel, and 38% of the goals came from outside the penalty area, long shots, provocative shots, rubbing shots... The opponent's defense line seemed transparent in front of him. What's even more amazing is that he scored only with 13.3% of penalty kicks and free kicks, which means that most goals need to face the goalkeeper's life and death saves.

And Ronaldo's 860 goals are like a shocking epic - 25% of the goals come from penalty kicks or headers, and 22% of the headers demonstrate the dominance of the "giant killer". His shooting relies more on physical talent and explosive power, just like a cannon that will never be silenced. But at the age of 38, he had to face the reality: after the age of 35, his average goal average plummeted from 0.92 goals to 0.65 goals, and the once lightning "CR7" is being eaten up by time.

Barcelona Dream Three Dynasty

The peak road: The team core and the lone hero

Messi's goal book hides the ultimate romance of football. The efficient collaboration of 413 assists and 58 minutes of participating in goals has made him the soul of Barcelona's "Dream Three Dynasty". Even in the Argentina national team, he can lead the team to win the Hercules Cup with 13 goals. His football philosophy is "pass the ball to his teammates, trust will bring miracles." The story of Ronaldo, the two strongest football players on the surface, is full of the tragic heroes. With 769 club goals and 131 national team goals, he has always been the only "terminator" of the team. In the Saudi League, he carried the entire team and scored 34 goals, but his opponent's average value was only 1/3 that Messi faced. His football philosophy is "I can score goals with my heel even if the whole world is facing my back."

Time Magic: 37-year-old VS 38-year-old "magic reality"

When Messi performed a "hat trick" in the quarter-finals of the 2024 World Cup and broke the deadlock with a barb, the entire stadium shouted "King of Ball". He proved that 37 years old is not the end, but the beginning of another peak. In the Saudi league in the same year, Ronaldo had to rely on extra training to fill the cracks in his physical fitness - his heading was still sharp, but the tremor of his knees during his sprint could no longer be concealed.

The two strongest football players on the surface are intriguing that if Messi plays at the pace of Ronaldo's 1,189 games, his goal book will have 110 more goals; and if Ronaldo plays 1,098 games with Messi's efficiency, his total goals will be reduced to over 800. Behind this set of numbers are two completely different football lives.

Football Apocalypse: The eternal debate topic of efficiency and passion

Messi's documentary is a prose poem, writing eternity with technology and consciousness; Ronaldo's achievements are like an action film, conquering the audience with sweat and fighting spirit. The former proves that "genius can transcend time", while the latter interprets "trying to rewrite the script." There are no losers in their duel, but they leave the world with the ultimate question: In the ultimate answer to football, is the precise efficiency more exciting, or is the passionate blood that never gives up?

Perhaps as the Guardian wrote: "This is not a question of who is greater, but football allows two heroes to exist at the same time!"

The two strongest football players on the surface